Sustainability consulting
Sustainability in focus
Achieving climate goals and the associated compliance with regulatory requirements pose major challenges for the real estate industry. We support you in identifying suitable optimisation potential in the areas of environment, social affairs and responsible corporate governance (ESG). Furthermore, we advise you on the implementation of a targeted sustainability management.
What we can specifically do for you
- Conducting ESG assessments with a holistic view of the property in the areas of environment, social issues and responsible corporate governance, including the derivation of optimisation potentials
- Identification and prioritisation of (modernisation) measures within the framework of climate protection and refurbishment roadmaps at property level
- Evaluation and benchmarking of energy consumption data and CO2 emissions
- Object verification on the basis of the current taxonomy criteria
- Statement on the criteria of the Disclosure Ordinance
- Strategic sustainability consulting and ESG reporting (e.g. GRI, DNK, GRESB) at company, fund or property level
- Preparation of individual service profiles according to client needs
What benefit you receive
- Objective and target-oriented assessment with regard to the relevant ESG criteria and the "stranded asset" risk
- Concrete proposals regarding energy and CO2-reducing optimisation options
- Meaningful results on the future viability of your property with regard to compliance with the EU taxonomy criteria and concrete proposals for achieving the desired ESG goals
- Greater planning certainty for your business plans (consideration of ESG CAPEX)
- An individual sustainability strategy at property and/or company level
FAQ Sustainability consulting
ESG criteria are increasingly moving into focus in the real estate industry due to regulatory and legal framework conditions. The real estate industry is undergoing a transformation towards more sustainability and the demand for sustainable investments is steadily increasing. If no sustainability features are available or no information is available for an assessment of individual ESG aspects, this can mean a risk with regard to the sustainable future viability of a property. This can be a disadvantage for future transactions, new lettings or financing. We identify these risks and derive optimisation potential and recommendations for action.
The EU taxonomy defines which economic activities can be classified as environmentally sustainable. We examine whether the requirements of the already published technical criteria of the individual environmental objectives according to the EU taxonomy can be met or fulfilled by implementing further measures.
According to the Disclosure Regulation, the negative impacts on sustainability in the real estate sector essentially relate to the aspects of energy-inefficient real estate investments and fossil fuel pollution in connection with real estate investments. Additional climate and environment-related indicators are energy intensity, greenhouse gas emissions, waste, resource consumption and biodiversity. Based on the on-site inspection and the property documentation, we check whether the information on the relevant negative sustainability indicators and impacts for the real estate sector of the Disclosure Regulation is available and provide a transparent overview.
Energy-inefficient properties as well as properties with high CO2 emissions have a negative impact on the climate and contribute to global warming. Existing properties that can be optimised have great potential to make their contribution to achieving Germany's climate protection goals through the implementation of suitable measures.
One speaks of a "stranded" real estate asset when properties with particularly high CO2 emissions no longer comply with the requirements of the German Climate Protection Act and the Paris Climate Agreement with regard to the specified CO2 emissions. In common parlance, the technical term "stranded asset" has become established for such cases. In order to assess the risk of a stranded asset, the real energy consumption and CO2 emissions of the property are evaluated and compared with the CO2 path according to CRREM (Carbon Risk Real Estate Monitor). On this basis, the time at which the stranded asset risk is likely to occur can be identified. Properties for which there is a prioritised need for action can thus be identified
In order to reduce the CO2 emissions of a property, there are sensible measures to be examined individually for each property. These include, for example, operational optimisation, conversion to renewable energies, optimisation of the building's energy or the purchase of green electricity. The recommendations for action also take into account suggestions for the timeframe for implementing the measures as well as the cost-effectiveness of the measures.
In the medium term, it is to be expected that the legislator will impose sanctions in the form of specific CO2 levies, that real estate appraisers will continuously devalue the affected properties as part of the legally prescribed valuation rounds, or that properties with a poor CO2 balance will ultimately no longer find buyers on the commercial real estate market and will thus no longer be tradable.
Currently, there are various possible standards for sustainability reporting in the real estate industry. These can help to increase the comparability and transparency of companies' sustainability activities and ensure comprehensive and targeted sustainability management.
